Wearer role-based visually modifiable garment

ABSTRACT

A system includes a wearer role identification device, a garment with a dynamically modifiable display, and a hardware controller for the dynamically modifiable display. The wearer role identification device identifies a dynamically changeable role of the wearer of the garment. The hardware controller adjusts the dynamically modifiable display based on real-time inputs received from the wearer role identification device.

BACKGROUND

The present disclosure relates to the field of garments, andspecifically to garments that are able to change their appearance. Morespecifically, the present disclosure related to garments that changetheir appearance based on the role of the wearer of the garment.

There are four main types of disasters.

Natural disasters include floods, hurricanes, earthquakes and volcanoeruptions that have immediate impacts on human health and secondaryimpacts causing further suffering from (for example) floods, landslides,fires, tsunamis.

Environmental emergencies include technological or industrial accidents,usually involving the production, use or transportation of hazardousmaterial, and occur where these materials are produced, used ortransported, and forest fires caused by humans.

Complex emergencies involve a break-down of authority, looting andattacks on strategic installations, including conflict situations andwar.

Pandemic emergencies involve a sudden onset of contagious disease thataffects health, disrupts services and businesses, and brings economicand social costs.

Any disaster can interrupt essential services, such as health care,electricity, water, sewage/garbage removal, transportation andcommunications.

All such types of disasters often create chaotic environments, in whichthe interplay between injured persons and/or damaged property withemergency responders (e.g., police, fire fighters, emergency health careproviders) is confusing. That is, coordinating emergency responderswithin such chaotic environments is difficult, since it is oftendifficult to even know who needs help, what the state/role of eachperson is (whether a victim of or responder to the disaster), etc.

SUMMARY

In an embodiment of the present invention, a system includes, but is notlimited to, a wearer role identification device, a garment with adynamically modifiable display, and a hardware controller for thedynamically modifiable display. The wearer role identification deviceidentifies a dynamically changeable role of the wearer of the garment.The hardware controller adjusts the dynamically modifiable display basedon real-time inputs received from the wearer role identification device.

In an embodiment of the present invention, a method adjusts a visualappearance of a garment. A wearer role identification device identifiesa dynamically adjustable role of a wearer of a garment, which has adynamically modifiable display. A hardware controller adjusts thedynamically modifiable display based on real-time inputs received fromthe wearer role identification device.

In an embodiment of the present invention, a computer program productadjusts a dynamically modifiable display on a garment. The computerprogram product includes a computer readable storage medium havingprogram code embodied therewith. The computer readable storage medium isnot a transitory signal per se, and the program code is readable andexecutable by a processor to perform a method of: identifying a role ofa wearer of a garment, where the role of the wearer is dynamicallychangeable, and where the garment comprises a dynamically modifiabledisplay; determining, based on inputs from an environmental dominant huesensor, a dominant hue of an environment in which the wearer is located;and adjusting, by a hardware controller, the dynamically modifiabledisplay based on the role of the wearer and real-time inputs receivedfrom the environmental dominant hue sensor.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 depicts a cloud computing node according to an embodiment of thepresent invention;

FIG. 2 depicts a cloud computing environment according to an embodimentof the present invention;

FIG. 3 depicts abstraction model layers according to an embodiment ofthe present invention;

FIG. 4 illustrates an exemplary system in which the present inventionmay be utilized; and

FIG. 5 is a high level flow-chart of one or more operations performed byone or more processors or other hardware devices to adjust a visualappearance of a garment.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

The present invention may be a system, a method, and/or a computerprogram product. The computer program product may include a computerreadable storage medium (or media) having computer readable programinstructions thereon for causing a processor to carry out aspects of thepresent invention.

The computer readable storage medium can be a tangible device that canretain and store instructions for use by an instruction executiondevice. The computer readable storage medium may be, for example, but isnot limited to, an electronic storage device, a magnetic storage device,an optical storage device, an electromagnetic storage device, asemiconductor storage device, or any suitable combination of theforegoing. A non-exhaustive list of more specific examples of thecomputer readable storage medium includes the following: a portablecomputer diskette, a hard disk, a random access memory (RAM), aread-only memory (ROM), an erasable programmable read-only memory (EPROMor Flash memory), a static random access memory (SRAM), a portablecompact disc read-only memory (CD-ROM), a digital versatile disk (DVD),a memory stick, a floppy disk, a mechanically encoded device such aspunch-cards or raised structures in a groove having instructionsrecorded thereon, and any suitable combination of the foregoing. Acomputer readable storage medium, as used herein, is not to be construedas being transitory signals per se, such as radio waves or other freelypropagating electromagnetic waves, electromagnetic waves propagatingthrough a waveguide or other transmission media (e.g., light pulsespassing through a fiber-optic cable), or electrical signals transmittedthrough a wire.

Computer readable program instructions described herein can bedownloaded to respective computing/processing devices from a computerreadable storage medium or to an external computer or external storagedevice via a network, for example, the Internet, a local area network, awide area network and/or a wireless network. The network may comprisecopper transmission cables, optical transmission fibers, wirelesstransmission, routers, firewalls, switches, gateway computers and/oredge servers. A network adapter card or network interface in eachcomputing/processing device receives computer readable programinstructions from the network and forwards the computer readable programinstructions for storage in a computer readable storage medium withinthe respective computing/processing device.

Computer readable program instructions for carrying out operations ofthe present invention may be assembler instructions,instruction-set-architecture (ISA) instructions, machine instructions,machine dependent instructions, microcode, firmware instructions,state-setting data, or either source code or object code written in anycombination of one or more programming languages, including an objectoriented programming language such as Smalltalk, C++ or the like, andconventional procedural programming languages, such as the “C”programming language or similar programming languages. The computerreadable program instructions may execute entirely on the user'scomputer, partly on the user's computer, as a stand-alone softwarepackage, partly on the user's computer and partly on a remote computeror entirely on the remote computer or server. In the latter scenario,the remote computer may be connected to the user's computer through anytype of network, including a local area network (LAN) or a wide areanetwork (WAN), or the connection may be made to an external computer(for example, through the Internet using an Internet Service Provider).In some embodiments, electronic circuitry including, for example,programmable logic circuitry, field-programmable gate arrays (FPGA), orprogrammable logic arrays (PLA) may execute the computer readableprogram instructions by utilizing state information of the computerreadable program instructions to personalize the electronic circuitry,in order to perform aspects of the present invention.

Aspects of the present invention are described herein with reference toflowchart illustrations and/or block diagrams of methods, apparatus(systems), and computer program products according to embodiments of theinvention. It will be understood that each block of the flowchartillustrations and/or block diagrams, and combinations of blocks in theflowchart illustrations and/or block diagrams, can be implemented bycomputer readable program instructions.

These computer readable program instructions may be provided to aprocessor of a general purpose computer, special purpose computer, orother programmable data processing apparatus to produce a machine, suchthat the instructions, which execute via the processor of the computeror other programmable data processing apparatus, create means forimplementing the functions/acts specified in the flowchart and/or blockdiagram block or blocks. These computer readable program instructionsmay also be stored in a computer readable storage medium that can directa computer, a programmable data processing apparatus, and/or otherdevices to function in a particular manner, such that the computerreadable storage medium having instructions stored therein comprises anarticle of manufacture including instructions which implement aspects ofthe function/act specified in the flowchart and/or block diagram blockor blocks.

The computer readable program instructions may also be loaded onto acomputer, other programmable data processing apparatus, or other deviceto cause a series of operational steps to be performed on the computer,other programmable apparatus or other device to produce a computerimplemented process, such that the instructions which execute on thecomputer, other programmable apparatus, or other device implement thefunctions/acts specified in the flowchart and/or block diagram block orblocks.

The flowchart and block diagrams in the Figures illustrate thearchitecture, functionality, and operation of possible implementationsof systems, methods, and computer program products according to variousembodiments of the present invention. In this regard, each block in theflowchart or block diagrams may represent a module, segment, or portionof instructions, which comprises one or more executable instructions forimplementing the specified logical function(s). In some alternativeimplementations, the functions noted in the block may occur out of theorder noted in the figures. For example, two blocks shown in successionmay, in fact, be executed substantially concurrently, or the blocks maysometimes be executed in the reverse order, depending upon thefunctionality involved. It will also be noted that each block of theblock diagrams and/or flowchart illustration, and combinations of blocksin the block diagrams and/or flowchart illustration, can be implementedby special purpose hardware-based systems that perform the specifiedfunctions or acts or carry out combinations of special purpose hardwareand computer instructions.

It is understood in advance that although this disclosure includes adetailed description on cloud computing, implementation of the teachingsrecited herein are not limited to a cloud computing environment. Rather,embodiments of the present invention are capable of being implemented inconjunction with any other type of computing environment now known orlater developed.

Cloud computing is a model of service delivery for enabling convenient,on-demand network access to a shared pool of configurable computingresources (e.g. networks, network bandwidth, servers, processing,memory, storage, applications, virtual machines, and services) that canbe rapidly provisioned and released with minimal management effort orinteraction with a provider of the service. This cloud model may includeat least five characteristics, at least three service models, and atleast four deployment models.

Characteristics are as follows:

On-demand self-service: a cloud consumer can unilaterally provisioncomputing capabilities, such as server time and network storage, asneeded automatically without requiring human interaction with theservice's provider.

Broad network access: capabilities are available over a network andaccessed through standard mechanisms that promote use by heterogeneousthin or thick client platforms (e.g., mobile phones, laptops, and PDAs).

Resource pooling: the provider's computing resources are pooled to servemultiple consumers using a multi-tenant model, with different physicaland virtual resources dynamically assigned and reassigned according todemand. There is a sense of location independence in that the consumergenerally has no control or knowledge over the exact location of theprovided resources but may be able to specify location at a higher levelof abstraction (e.g., country, state, or datacenter).

Rapid elasticity: capabilities can be rapidly and elasticallyprovisioned, in some cases automatically, to quickly scale out andrapidly released to quickly scale in. To the consumer, the capabilitiesavailable for provisioning often appear to be unlimited and can bepurchased in any quantity at any time.

Measured service: cloud systems automatically control and optimizeresource use by leveraging a metering capability at some level ofabstraction appropriate to the type of service (e.g., storage,processing, bandwidth, and active user accounts). Resource usage can bemonitored, controlled, and reported providing transparency for both theprovider and consumer of the utilized service.

Service Models are as follows:

Software as a Service (SaaS): the capability provided to the consumer isto use the provider's applications running on a cloud infrastructure.The applications are accessible from various client devices through athin client interface such as a web browser (e.g., web-based e-mail).The consumer does not manage or control the underlying cloudinfrastructure including network, servers, operating systems, storage,or even individual application capabilities, with the possible exceptionof limited user-specific application configuration settings.

Platform as a Service (PaaS): the capability provided to the consumer isto deploy onto the cloud infrastructure consumer-created or acquiredapplications created using programming languages and tools supported bythe provider. The consumer does not manage or control the underlyingcloud infrastructure including networks, servers, operating systems, orstorage, but has control over the deployed applications and possiblyapplication hosting environment configurations.

Infrastructure as a Service (IaaS): the capability provided to theconsumer is to provision processing, storage, networks, and otherfundamental computing resources where the consumer is able to deploy andrun arbitrary software, which can include operating systems andapplications. The consumer does not manage or control the underlyingcloud infrastructure but has control over operating systems, storage,deployed applications, and possibly limited control of select networkingcomponents (e.g., host firewalls).

Deployment Models are as follows:

Private cloud: the cloud infrastructure is operated solely for anorganization. It may be managed by the organization or a third party andmay exist on-premises or off-premises.

Community cloud: the cloud infrastructure is shared by severalorganizations and supports a specific community that has shared concerns(e.g., mission, security requirements, policy, and complianceconsiderations). It may be managed by the organizations or a third partyand may exist on-premises or off-premises.

Public cloud: the cloud infrastructure is made available to the generalpublic or a large industry group and is owned by an organization sellingcloud services.

Hybrid cloud: the cloud infrastructure is a composition of two or moreclouds (private, community, or public) that remain unique entities butare bound together by standardized or proprietary technology thatenables data and application portability (e.g., cloud bursting forload-balancing between clouds).

A cloud computing environment is service oriented with a focus onstatelessness, low coupling, modularity, and semantic interoperability.At the heart of cloud computing is an infrastructure comprising anetwork of interconnected nodes.

Referring now to FIG. 1, a schematic of an example of a cloud computingnode is shown. Cloud computing node 10 is only one example of a suitablecloud computing node and is not intended to suggest any limitation as tothe scope of use or functionality of embodiments of the inventiondescribed herein. Regardless, cloud computing node 10 is capable ofbeing implemented and/or performing any of the functionality set forthhereinabove.

In cloud computing node 10 there is a computer system/server 12, whichis operational with numerous other general purpose or special purposecomputing system environments or configurations. Examples of well-knowncomputing systems, environments, and/or configurations that may besuitable for use with computer system/server 12 include, but are notlimited to, personal computer systems, server computer systems, thinclients, thick clients, hand-held or laptop devices, multiprocessorsystems, microprocessor-based systems, set top boxes, programmableconsumer electronics, network PCs, minicomputer systems, mainframecomputer systems, and distributed cloud computing environments thatinclude any of the above systems or devices, and the like.

Computer system/server 12 may be described in the general context ofcomputer system-executable instructions, such as program modules, beingexecuted by a computer system. Generally, program modules may includeroutines, programs, objects, components, logic, data structures, and soon that perform particular tasks or implement particular abstract datatypes. Computer system/server 12 may be practiced in distributed cloudcomputing environments where tasks are performed by remote processingdevices that are linked through a communications network. In adistributed cloud computing environment, program modules may be locatedin both local and remote computer system storage media including memorystorage devices.

As shown in FIG. 1, computer system/server 12 in cloud computing node 10is shown in the form of a general-purpose computing device. Thecomponents of computer system/server 12 may include, but are not limitedto, one or more processors or processing units 16, a system memory 28,and a bus 18 that couples various system components including systemmemory 28 to processor 16.

Bus 18 represents one or more of any of several types of bus structures,including a memory bus or memory controller, a peripheral bus, anaccelerated graphics port, and a processor or local bus using any of avariety of bus architectures. By way of example, and not limitation,such architectures include Industry Standard Architecture (ISA) bus,Micro Channel Architecture (MCA) bus, Enhanced ISA (EISA) bus, VideoElectronics Standards Association (VESA) local bus, and PeripheralComponent Interconnects (PCI) bus.

Computer system/server 12 typically includes a variety of computersystem readable media. Such media may be any available media that isaccessible by computer system/server 12, and it includes both volatileand non-volatile media, removable and non-removable media.

System memory 28 can include computer system readable media in the formof volatile memory, such as random access memory (RAM) 30 and/or cachememory 32. Computer system/server 12 may further include otherremovable/non-removable, volatile/non-volatile computer system storagemedia. By way of example only, storage system 34 can be provided forreading from and writing to a non-removable, non-volatile magnetic media(not shown and typically called a “hard drive”). Although not shown, amagnetic disk drive for reading from and writing to a removable,non-volatile magnetic disk (e.g., a “floppy disk”), and an optical diskdrive for reading from or writing to a removable, non-volatile opticaldisk such as a CD-ROM, DVD-ROM or other optical media can be provided.In such instances, each can be connected to bus 18 by one or more datamedia interfaces. As will be further depicted and described below,memory 28 may include at least one program product having a set (e.g.,at least one) of program modules that are configured to carry out thefunctions of embodiments of the invention.

Program/utility 40, having a set (at least one) of program modules 42,may be stored in memory 28 by way of example, and not limitation, aswell as an operating system, one or more application programs, otherprogram modules, and program data. Each of the operating system, one ormore application programs, other program modules, and program data orsome combination thereof, may include an implementation of a networkingenvironment. Program modules 42 generally carry out the functions and/ormethodologies of embodiments of the invention as described herein.

Computer system/server 12 may also communicate with one or more externaldevices 14 such as a keyboard, a pointing device, a display 24, etc.;one or more devices that enable a user to interact with computersystem/server 12; and/or any devices (e.g., network card, modem, etc.)that enable computer system/server 12 to communicate with one or moreother computing devices. Such communication can occur via Input/Output(I/O) interfaces 22. Still yet, computer system/server 12 cancommunicate with one or more networks such as a local area network(LAN), a general wide area network (WAN), and/or a public network (e.g.,the Internet) via network adapter 20. As depicted, network adapter 20communicates with the other components of computer system/server 12 viabus 18. It should be understood that although not shown, other hardwareand/or software components could be used in conjunction with computersystem/server 12. Examples, include, but are not limited to: microcode,device drivers, redundant processing units, external disk drive arrays,RAID systems, tape drives, and data archival storage systems, etc.

Referring now to FIG. 2, illustrative cloud computing environment 50 isdepicted. As shown, cloud computing environment 50 comprises one or morecloud computing nodes 10 with which local computing devices used bycloud consumers, such as, for example, personal digital assistant (PDA)or cellular telephone MA, desktop computer MB, laptop computer 54C,and/or automobile computer system MN may communicate. Nodes 10 maycommunicate with one another. They may be grouped (not shown) physicallyor virtually, in one or more networks, such as Private, Community,Public, or Hybrid clouds as described hereinabove, or a combinationthereof. This allows cloud computing environment 50 to offerinfrastructure, platforms and/or software as services for which a cloudconsumer does not need to maintain resources on a local computingdevice. It is understood that the types of computing devices MA-N shownin FIG. 2 are intended to be illustrative only and that computing nodes10 and cloud computing environment 50 can communicate with any type ofcomputerized device over any type of network and/or network addressableconnection (e.g., using a web browser).

Referring now to FIG. 3, a set of functional abstraction layers providedby cloud computing environment 50 (FIG. 2) is shown. It should beunderstood in advance that the components, layers, and functions shownin FIG. 3 are intended to be illustrative only and embodiments of theinvention are not limited thereto. As depicted, the following layers andcorresponding functions are provided:

Hardware and software layer 60 includes hardware and softwarecomponents. Examples of hardware components include: mainframes 61; RISC(Reduced Instruction Set Computer) architecture based servers 62;servers 63; blade servers 64; storage devices 65; and networks andnetworking components 66. In some embodiments, software componentsinclude network application server software 67 and database software 68.

Virtualization layer 70 provides an abstraction layer from which thefollowing examples of virtual entities may be provided: virtual servers71; virtual storage 72; virtual networks 73, including virtual privatenetworks; virtual applications and operating systems 74; and virtualclients 75.

In one example, management layer 80 may provide the functions describedbelow. Resource provisioning 81 provides dynamic procurement ofcomputing resources and other resources that are utilized to performtasks within the cloud computing environment. Metering and Pricing 82provide cost tracking as resources are utilized within the cloudcomputing environment, and billing or invoicing for consumption of theseresources. In one example, these resources may comprise applicationsoftware licenses. Security provides identity verification for cloudconsumers and tasks, as well as protection for data and other resources.User portal 83 provides access to the cloud computing environment forconsumers and system administrators. Service level management 84provides cloud computing resource allocation and management such thatrequired service levels are met. Service Level Agreement (SLA) planningand fulfillment 85 provide pre-arrangement for, and procurement of,cloud computing resources for which a future requirement is anticipatedin accordance with an SLA.

Workloads layer 90 provides examples of functionality for which thecloud computing environment may be utilized. Examples of workloads andfunctions which may be provided from this layer include: mapping andnavigation 91; software development and lifecycle management 92; virtualclassroom education delivery 93; data analytics processing 94;transaction processing 95; and clothing modification processing 96.

With reference now to FIG. 4, an exemplary system in which the presentinvention may be utilized is presented.

As shown in FIG. 4, a garment 402 is worn by a wearer (not shown). Forexemplary purposes, assume that the wearer is located at a disastersite. While the wearer may be a victim of the disaster, further assumefor explanatory purposes that the wearer is a responder to the disaster(i.e., one who provides policy, fire, medical assistance to victims ofthe disaster).

Garment 402 may be any object that is wearable. Examples of garment 402include, but are not limited to, a shirt, a coat, a backpack, a shoe, asock, a jacket, a purse, an umbrella, a vest, etc.

As shown in FIG. 4, garment 402 includes a dynamically modifiabledisplay 404, which is applied to, covers, and/or is integrated intogarment 402. For example, assume that garment 402 includes fibers madeof Organic Light Emitting Diodes (OLEDs), which are light-emissiveelectroluminescent layers of organic compounds that emit light when anelectric current is applied. Such organic compounds are typicallysituated between two electrodes, which selectively apply current throughthe OLED, thus changing the OLED from a transparent state to a visiblelight emitting state. Thus, when woven into the fabric of the garment402 as fiber-optic threads, the presence of the OLED is not visuallyapparent until activated by electrical current from a controller such atthe hardware controller 406 shown in FIG. 4.

While the hardware controller 406 may be a full function microprocessor,in a preferred embodiment hardware controller 406 is a microcontrollerthat has access to a power source 407 (e.g., a battery) and basiccircuitry for selectively sending power to the dynamically modifiabledisplay 404, thereby selectively illuminating all or portions of thedynamically modifiable display 404.

In another embodiment, the dynamically modifiable display 404 is anarray of Light Emitting Diodes (LEDs), which are controllable by thehardware controller 406 to generate a particular pattern (e.g., aflashing light, a red cross indicating a need for medical assistance,etc.) or other light patterns (e.g., uniform illumination of the LEDs).

In one embodiment of the present invention, the hardware controller 406also contains and/or has access to a data memory 409, which is anon-volatile memory that stores information about a role of the wearerof the garment 402, an identity of the wearer of the garment 402,display information about the dynamically modifiable display 404 (i.e.,data that controls how current is selectively applied to various areason the dynamically modifiable display 404), information about theenvironment in which the garment 402 is located, etc.

In an embodiment in which the data memory 409 stores information aboutthe role of the wearer of the garment 402, such data may come from awearer role identification device 408, which identifies a role of awearer of a garment. In various embodiments of the present invention,the role of the wearer is dynamically changeable.

For example, assume that a first responder (e.g., a responder to adisaster site) is qualified as a firefighter, a paramedic, and aHazardous Materials (HAZMAT) responder. Initially, the wearer roleidentification device 408 may generate a default message identifying thewearer of the garment 402 as a firefighter (based on default weareridentification data stored in data memory 409), which is the role thatthe wearer is initially taking on upon arriving at the disaster site.However, if there is no fire to fight (i.e., if there never was a fireor the fire has been put out), then the wearer of the garment 402 maynow be available as either a paramedic or a HAZMAT responder (assuminghe/she is so qualified/certified/licensed). The user can enter (using avoice command to a voice recognition system that is part of the wearerrole identification device 408, clicking a button/switch on the wearerrole identification device 408, etc.) an input indicating that he/she isnow available to act as a paramedic or a HAZMAT responder. This inputcauses the hardware controller 406 to change the appearance of thedynamically modifiable display 404.

For example, assume that the dynamically modifiable display 404 is apanel of OLEDs that are woven into the fabric of the garment 402. Thehardware controller 406 can change the visual appearance of thedynamically modifiable display 404 (and thus the garment 402) fromorange (which identifies firefighters) to red (which identifiesparamedics) or blue (which identifies HAZMAT responders). Thus, otherfirst responders and/or victims at the disaster site are able to quicklyidentify the wearer as having one or more of the abilities of the wearer(firefighter, paramedic, HAZMAT responder).

As described thus far, the garment 402 is able to change its visualappearance based on the current role of the wearer, thus making thewearer (and his/her role/abilities) visually apparent to those at thedisaster site. In an embodiment of the present invention, thisvisibility is further adjusted according to the environment of thedisaster site. For example, if the disaster site is a mountain side inwhich an avalanche has occurred, making the garment 402 white would notmake it highly visible. Similarly, if the disaster site is a coal minedisaster site, making the garment 402 black would not make it highlyvisible. Similarly, if the disaster site is a room in which the wallsand floor have been painted red, making the garment 402 red would notmake it highly visible. Thus, in this embodiment an environmentaldominant hue sensor 410 detects a dominant hue of an environment inwhich the wearer is located.

Exemplary environmental dominant hue sensor 410 is a light sensor thatis able to receive projected and/or reflected light and to differentiatedifferent hues (colors). For example, environmental dominant hue sensor410 may contain a first light sensor that is sensitive to red light, asecond light sensor that is sensitive to blue light, and a third lightsensor that is sensitive to green light. By combining thereadings/outputs from these three light sensors, the environmentaldominant hue sensor 410 is able to determine the dominant (i.e., mostwidespread) color of the environment of the disaster site.

Outputs from the environmental dominant hue sensor 410, which are basedon this environmental hue information, are input into the hardwarecontroller 406, which then further adjusts the dynamically modifiabledisplay 404 based on the dominant hue of the environment in which thewearer is located. For example, if the environment is that of anavalanche disaster site, then the hardware controller 406 will darkenthe appearance of the dynamically modifiable display 404. Similarly, ifthe environment is that of a coal mining disaster site, then thehardware controller 406 will lighten the appearance of the dynamicallymodifiable display 404. Similarly, if the disaster site (environment) isthat of a room in which the floors/wall/ceiling are painted red, thenthe hardware controller 406 will avoid the use of red when configuringthe appearance of the dynamically modifiable display 404.

In an embodiment of the present invention, the garment 402 includesand/or has access to a biometric sensor 412. Examples of biometricsensor 412 include, but are not limited to, a blood pressure/pulsemonitor (e.g., a pressure/sound sensor that detects the pulse and/orblood pressure of the holder of an electronic device such as a smartphone), a skin sensor (e.g., a resistance sensor that measures agalvanic skin response from the user/holder sweating while holding anelectronic device such as a smart phone), a microphone (e.g., to detecta breathing pattern of the holder of an electronic device such as asmart phone), etc. Thus, biometric sensor 412 is an electronic devicefor gathering biometric data associated with a human. Biometric data isdata describing a physiological state, physical attribute, ormeasurement of a physiological condition of a person.

The biometric sensor 412 generates an indication of a real-timebiometric state of the wearer of the garment 402. Based on thisreal-time biometric state of the wearer of the garment 402, the hardwarecontroller 406 further adjusts the dynamically modifiable display 404.

For example, assume that the wearer of the garment 402 is a paramedicwith 10 years of experience (as indicated by data that has been loadedinto the data memory 409). Assume further that the biometric sensor 412indicates that the heartrate, respiratory rate, and/or blood pressure ofthe wearer of the garment 402 is elevated to a level that has beenpredefined as being indicative of high-anxiety for a paramedic with 10years of experience. That is, such elevated biometric readings may benormal for a novice paramedic or a mere observer of the disaster, butare indicative of an emergency state (e.g., in need of medicalassistance for the wearer of the garment 402, in need of assistance inhelping other victims at the disaster site, in need of resources such asmedical supplies, etc.) for an experienced paramedic. Thus, based on 1)the role of the wearer of the garment 402 and 2) readings from thebiometric sensor 412, the visual appearance of the dynamicallymodifiable display 404 (and thus the garment 402) can be selectivelychanged/modified.

In another example, the role of the wearer combined with the biometricreadings may cause the dynamically modifiable display 404 to startflashing a blinking red cross or other recognizable symbol, indicatingthat the wearer of the garment 402 is a paramedic who needs helptransporting and/or treating a victim at the disaster site due tohis/her biometric state. That is, the blinking red cross not onlyidentifies the role of the wearer (paramedic), but also indicates thathe/she is physically or emotionally compromised, thus in need ofimmediate assistance.

In one embodiment of the present invention, the garment 402 includes apositioning hardware system 414, such as a Global Positioning System(GPS) device that uses space-based satellites that provide geophysicalcoordinate information to a GPS receiver. Thus, the positioning hardwaresystem 414 determines a real-time location of the wearer of the garment402.

Knowing where the wearer of the garment 402 is in real-time providesinformation that may be used in various manners. For example, assumethat managing server 426 is used by a Command and Control (C&C)supervisor at a disaster site. Information from the positioning hardwaresystem 414 allows this C&C supervisor to know where all emergencyresponders under his/her command are located within a disaster site atany point in time.

In one or more embodiments, information generated by the positioninghardware system 414 provides information needed to present additionalinformation about the real-time contextual state of the real-timelocation of the wearer of the garment 402 from a news provider server428, thus enabling the hardware controller 406 to further adjust thedynamically modifiable display 404 based on the real-time location ofthe wearer of the garment. That is, the positioning hardware system 414lets the communication link 416 and/or hardware controller 406 knowwhere the garment 402 is currently located (e.g., the disaster site),thus allowing the communication link 416 to interrogate the newsprovider server 428 for real-time information about the disaster site.

Examples of news provider server 428 include, but are not limited to asocial media service server, a news reporting broadcaster server, acrowdsourcing server, etc.

For example, assume that news provider server 428 is a social mediaservice server, which connects members of a social media community. Anexemplary social media service allows persons to post messages withmetadata that describe a topic. For example, metadata in the form of ahashtag followed by the topic (e.g., #Disaster) can be monitored by acommunication link 416 (e.g., a cellular link, which includes dataprocessing abilities, to the news provider server 428). Postings withthe metadata #Disaster can be monitored by and processed by thecommunication link 416, thus generating a flag/message that the disastersite is experiencing a release of toxic gas. This information is thenconveyed to hardware controller 406, which adjusts the appearance of thedynamically modifiable display 404 accordingly. In the example of themulti-capable wearer (firefighter, paramedic, HAZMAT responder), thevisual appearance of the dynamically modifiable display 404 would changeto that which visually indicates that the wearer is a qualified HAZMATresponder, thus making him/her available to respond to the gas leakbeing reported by the news provider server 428.

When acting in the role of a news reporting broadcaster server, the newsprovider server 428 is a server that broadcasts (e.g., via a cellularnetwork) information from a professional news reporting service (e.g., alocal radio station) to the garment 402 via the communication link 416(e.g., a radio receiver), thus enabling the hardware controller 406 toadjust the appearance of the dynamically modifiable display 404accordingly.

While the appearance of the dynamically modifiable display 404 has beendescribed thus far as presenting a singular color/shape according to asingle current role of the wearer of the garment 402, in one embodimentof the present invention, the dynamically modifiable display 404 is ableto simultaneously display multiple colors/shapes that correspond tomultiple roles of the wearer of the garment 402. For example, thedynamically modifiable display 404 may simultaneously display orangeindicating that the wearer is a firefighter, red indicating that thewearer is also a paramedic, and blue indicating that the wearer is alsoa HAZMAT responder.

In one embodiment of the present invention, the colors/shapes beingdisplayed on the dynamically modifiable display 404 not only identifythe multiple roles that the wearer can assume, but also the level ofexpertise in each role. For example, continuing with the example inwhich orange indicates that the wearer of the garment 402 is afirefighter, red indicates that the wearer is also a paramedic, and blueindicates that the wearer is also a HAZMAT responder, assume that thewearer of the garment 402 has been a firefighter for 10 years, aparamedic for 10 years, but a qualified HAZMAT responder for only amonth, as indicated by data stored in a database storage device 418(and/or the data memory 409) that is within and/or accessible to garment402. As such, a display area of the dynamically modifiable display 404may be 45% orange (indicating a high level of expertise infirefighting), 45% red (indicating a high level of expertise inemergency medicine), but only 10% blue (indicating only limited abilityin handling HAZMAT emergencies). In one embodiment, these differentamounts of color are displayed in a bar graph on the dynamicallymodifiable display 404, thus making it easier to see the differentlevels of expertise held by the wearer of the garment 402.

In one embodiment of the present invention, the garment 420 includes aprosody analyzer 420, which analyzes vocal patterns of the wearer todetermine a current emotional state of the wearer. That is, a microphone(not shown) within the prosody analyzer 420 captures not onlyvocalizations that are coherent (verbal) speech, but also non-verbalsounds such as breath sounds, grunts, and other types of vocalizationsof the wearer of the garment 402. The prosody analyzer 420 analyzesthese vocalizations to determine the current state of the wearer of thegarment 402. For example, a rasping sound may indicate that the wearerhas a punctured lung (such that the current state of the wearer is amedical state condition). A high-pitched rapid vocal pattern mayindicate that the wearer of the garment 402 is panicking (such that thecurrent state of the wearer is an emotional state condition). A gruntmay indicate that the wearer of the garment 402 is strenuously exerting(such that the current state of the wearer is a workload statecondition).

Based on the current state of the wearer of the garment 402 asdetermined by the prosody analyzer 420, the hardware controller 406 isable to further adjust/modify the appearance of the dynamicallymodifiable display 404. For example, if the wearer has a punctured lung(as indicated by the rasping sound detected by the prosody analyzer420), then the dynamically modifiable display 404 may change to arapidly blinking red light, indicating the need for immediate medicalattention. Similarly, if the wearer is panicking (as indicated by thehigh-pitched vocal pattern detected by the prosody analyzer 420), thenthe dynamically modifiable display 404 may turn black, indicating thatthe wearer is no longer available to work the disaster site. Similarly,if the wearer is strenuously exerting himself physically (as indicatedby the grunting sound detected by the prosody analyzer 420), then thedynamically modifiable display 404 may turn to a slow-blinking yellowlight, indicating the need for assistance from another person or amechanical lifting device (e.g., to move rubble from an earthquakesite).

While the prosody analyzer 420 may be able to automatically determinewhat resource(s) are needed by the wearer of the garment 402, in oneembodiment this determination is made by a resource needs determinationdevice 422, which identifies a current resource need of the wearer ofthe garment 402 based on an input to the resource needs determinationdevice from the wearer of the garment and/or on the real-time role ofthe wearer of the garment 402.

That is, the wearer of the garment 402 may simply push a button, flip aswitch, speak into a microphone, etc. that is associated with theresource needs determination device 422, thus providing an inputindicating what resource is needed (i.e., another person, a tool, etc.).This input is then provided to the hardware controller 406, which altersthe appearance of the dynamically modifiable display 404 (e.g., aflashing yellow appearance of the dynamically modifiable display 404 mayindicate the need for a backhoe to move rubble from a building).

In one embodiment of the present invention, the appearance of thedynamically modifiable display 404 is dependent not only on the input tothe resource needs determination device 422 provided by the wearer ofthe garment 402, but also on the role of that wearer (as identified bydata within the database storage device 418 and/or data memory 409). Forexample, if the role of the wearer of the garment 402 is that of aparamedic, and the wearer of the garment 402 inputs a signal to theresource needs determination device 422 that he/she needs backupassistance, then a flashing red cross may be displayed on thedynamically modifiable display 404, indicating that he/she needs anotherparamedic to assist him/her. However, if the role of the wearer of thegarment 402 is that of a firefighter, and the wearer of the garment 402inputs a signal to the resource needs determination device 422 thathe/she needs backup assistance, then a flashing orange triangle may bedisplayed on the dynamically modifiable display 404, indicating thathe/she needs another firefighter to assist him/her.

In one embodiment of the present invention, the garment 402 includes aninter-garment communication device 424, which communicates with othergarments 430 within a predefined area to create an Internet of Thingsthat is able to identify roles and locations of garment wearers equippedwith inter-garment communication devices.

For example, assume that a disaster site is populated with multipleresponders, each of which is wearing a version of the garment 402described herein (either as the depicted garment 402 or the othergarments 430 shown in FIG. 4). By communicating among themselves,garment 402 and other garment(s) 430 are able to provide information tothe wearers of the garments/other garments 402/430, either directly orvia the managing server 426, about the current state of the disastersite. For example, assume that the garment/garments 402/430 are equippedwith an environment sensor 427, which is able to detect chemicals (i.e.,a toxin or other chemical detector), biologicals (i.e., a sensor that isable to detect certain viruses/bacteria), sound (i.e., a noisedosimeter), and/or other states of the disaster site. This informationcan then be used to direct the wearers of the garment/garments 402/430towards or away from certain “hot spots” of chemicals, noise, etc.

With reference now to FIG. 5, a high level flow-chart of one or moreoperations performed by one or more processors or other hardware devicesto adjust a visual appearance of a garment is presented.

After initiator block 502, a wearer role identification device (e.g.,wearer role identification device 408 shown in FIG. 2) identifies a roleof a wearer of a garment (e.g., garment 402 shown in FIG. 2), asdescribed in block 504. As described herein, the role of the wearer isdynamically changeable, and the garment includes a dynamicallymodifiable display.

As depicted in block 506, in one embodiment an environmental dominanthue sensor (e.g., environmental dominant hue sensor 410 shown in FIG. 4)also detects a dominant hue of an environment in which the wearer islocated.

As depicted in block 508 in FIG. 5, a hardware controller (e.g.,hardware controller 406 shown in FIG. 4) adjusts the dynamicallymodifiable display based on real-time inputs received from the wearerrole identification device and/or the environmental dominant hue sensor410.

The flow-chart shown in FIG. 5 ends at terminator block 510.

In one embodiment of the present invention, the biometric sensorgenerates an indication of a real-time biometric state of the wearer ofthe garment, and the hardware controller further adjusts the dynamicallymodifiable display based on just the real-time biometric state of thewearer of the garment.

In one embodiment of the present invention, a biometric sensor (e.g.,biometric sensor 412 shown in FIG. 4) generates an indication of areal-time biometric state of the wearer of the garment. The hardwarecontroller further adjusts the dynamically modifiable display based onreal-time inputs received from the biometric sensor and the wearer roleidentification device, as described herein.

That is, in one embodiment, the appearance of the dynamically modifiabledisplay is further adjusted based just on the biometric state of thewearer, while in another embodiment the appearance of the dynamicallymodifiable display is further adjusted based on both the biometricreadings when applied to a specific role. That is, in one embodiment,the dynamically modifiable display is adjusted according to thebiometric readings, regardless of for whom (or for what role) thereadings were taken. In another embodiment, the dynamically modifiabledisplay is adjusted according to the biometric readings, depending onthe person/role for whom/which the readings were taken.

In one embodiment of the present invention, a positioning hardwaresystem receives a real-time location of the wearer of the garment. Anews provider (e.g., a news reporting enterprise, a social mediacommunity, etc.) provides a real-time contextual state of the real-timelocation of the wearer of the garment. The hardware controller thenfurther adjusts the dynamically modifiable display based on thereal-time location of the wearer of the garment. That is, thedynamically modifiable display is adjusted solely based on theenvironment, regardless of the role of the person wearing the garment402.

In one embodiment of the present invention, a positioning hardwaresystem provides a real-time location of the wearer of the garment, and anews provider provides a real-time contextual state of the real-timelocation of the wearer of the garment. In this embodiment, the hardwarecontroller further adjusts the dynamically modifiable display based onthe real-time location of the wearer of the garment and a role of thewearer of the garment while within the real-time location, where therole of the wearer of the garment while within the real-time locationdepends on a current state of the real-time location. Thus, in thisembodiment, the dynamically modifiable display is adjusted based on notonly the environment, but also what the role of the wearer is whilewithin that environment. Thus, the environment defines the role of thewearer.

For example, while at a fire, the role of the wearer of the garment 402may be that of a firefighter, while at a chemical spill, the role of thesame wearer of the garment 402 may be that of a HAZMAT responder. Thatis, the environment defines the roles of the wearer of the garment 402,which controls the appearance of the garment 402 (e.g., orange forfirefighter and blue for a HAZMAT responder).

In one embodiment of the present invention, the hardware controllerretrieves, from a database storage device, multiple real-time roles ofthe wearer of the garment, and then dynamically adjusts the dynamicallymodifiable display to present visual images that simultaneouslyrepresent the multiple roles, as described herein.

In one embodiment of the present invention, a prosody analyzer analyzesvocal patterns of the wearer to determine a current state of the wearer,and the hardware controller further adjusts the dynamically modifiabledisplay based on the current state of the wearer of the garment, asdescribed herein.

In one embodiment of the present invention, the hardware controllerretrieves, from a database storage device (e.g., database storage device418 shown in FIG. 4), a real-time role of the wearer of the garment. Aresource needs determination device (e.g., resource needs determinationdevice 422 shown in FIG. 4) determines a current resource need of thewearer of the garment based on an input to the resource needsdetermination device from the wearer of the garment and on the real-timerole of the wearer of the garment. The hardware controller then furtheradjusts the dynamically modifiable display based on the current resourceneed of the wearer and the real-time role of the wearer of the garment.That is, based on what the wearer indicates he needs, as well as thewearer's role, the hardware controller will further modify theappearance of the garment/dynamically modifiable display.

The terminology used herein is for the purpose of describing particularembodiments only and is not intended to be limiting of the presentinvention. As used herein, the singular forms “a”, “an” and “the” areintended to include the plural forms as well, unless the context clearlyindicates otherwise. It will be further understood that the terms“comprises” and/or “comprising,” when used in this specification,specify the presence of stated features, integers, steps, operations,elements, and/or components, but do not preclude the presence oraddition of one or more other features, integers, steps, operations,elements, components, and/or groups thereof.

The corresponding structures, materials, acts, and equivalents of allmeans or step plus function elements in the claims below are intended toinclude any structure, material, or act for performing the function incombination with other claimed elements as specifically claimed. Thedescription of various embodiments of the present invention has beenpresented for purposes of illustration and description, but is notintended to be exhaustive or limited to the present invention in theform disclosed. Many modifications and variations will be apparent tothose of ordinary skill in the art without departing from the scope andspirit of the present invention. The embodiment was chosen and describedin order to best explain the principles of the present invention and thepractical application, and to enable others of ordinary skill in the artto understand the present invention for various embodiments with variousmodifications as are suited to the particular use contemplated.

Any methods described in the present disclosure may be implementedthrough the use of a VHDL (VHSIC Hardware Description Language) programand a VHDL chip. VHDL is an exemplary design-entry language for FieldProgrammable Gate Arrays (FPGAs), Application Specific IntegratedCircuits (ASICs), and other similar electronic devices. Thus, anysoftware-implemented method described herein may be emulated by ahardware-based VHDL program, which is then applied to a VHDL chip, suchas a FPGA.

Having thus described embodiments of the present invention of thepresent application in detail and by reference to illustrativeembodiments thereof, it will be apparent that modifications andvariations are possible without departing from the scope of the presentinvention defined in the appended claims.

What is claimed is:
 1. A system comprising: a wearer role identification device that identifies a role of a wearer of a garment, wherein the role of the wearer is dynamically changeable, and wherein the garment comprises a dynamically modifiable display; and a hardware controller for adjusting the dynamically modifiable display based on real-time inputs received from the wearer role identification device.
 2. The system of claim 1, further comprising: an environmental dominant hue sensor that detects a dominant hue of an environment in which the wearer is located, wherein the hardware controller further adjusts the dynamically modifiable display based on the dominant hue of the environment in which the wearer is located.
 3. The system of claim 1, wherein the dynamically modifiable display is interwoven into the garment.
 4. The system of claim 1, further comprising: a biometric sensor, wherein the biometric sensor generates an indication of a real-time biometric state of the wearer of the garment, and wherein the hardware controller further adjusts the dynamically modifiable display based on the real-time biometric state of the wearer of the garment.
 5. The system of claim 1, further comprising: a positioning hardware system, wherein the positioning hardware system determines a real-time location of the wearer of the garment; and a communication link to a news provider server associated with a news provider, wherein the news provider provides a real-time contextual state of the real-time location of the wearer of the garment, and wherein the hardware controller further adjusts the dynamically modifiable display based on the real-time location of the wearer of the garment.
 6. The system of claim 1, further comprising: a positioning hardware system, wherein the positioning hardware system determines a real-time location of the wearer of the garment; and a communication link to a news provider, wherein the news provider provides a real-time contextual state of the real-time location of the wearer of the garment, and wherein the hardware controller further adjusts the dynamically modifiable display based on the real-time location of the wearer of the garment and a role of the wearer of the garment while within the real-time location, wherein the role of the wearer of the garment while within the real-time location depends on a current state of the real-time location.
 7. The system of claim 1, further comprising: a database storage device that contains a real-time role of the wearer of the garment, wherein the wearer role identification device retrieves the real-time role of the wearer of the garment as a real-time input to the hardware controller for adjusting the dynamically modifiable display, wherein the wearer of the garment holds multiple roles, and wherein the dynamically modifiable display presents visual images that simultaneously represent the multiple roles.
 8. The system of claim 1, further comprising: a prosody analyzer, wherein the prosody analyzer analyzes vocal patterns of the wearer to determine a current state of the wearer, and wherein the hardware controller further adjust the dynamically modifiable display based on the current state of the wearer of the garment.
 9. The system of claim 1, further comprising: a database storage device that contains a real-time role of the wearer of the garment; a resource needs determination device, wherein the resource needs determination device identifies a current resource need of the wearer of the garment based on an input to the resource needs determination device from the wearer of the garment and on the real-time role of the wearer of the garment.
 10. The system of claim 1, further comprising: an inter-garment communication device, wherein the inter-garment communication device communicates with other garments within a predefined area to create an Internet of Things that is able to identify roles and locations of garment wearers equipped with inter-garment communication devices.
 11. A method for adjusting a visual appearance of a garment, the method: identifying, by a wearer role identification device, a role of a wearer of a garment, wherein the role of the wearer is dynamically changeable, and wherein the garment comprises a dynamically modifiable display; and adjusting, by a hardware controller, the dynamically modifiable display based on real-time inputs received from the wearer role identification device.
 12. The method of claim 11, further comprising: detecting, by an environmental dominant hue sensor, a dominant hue of an environment in which the wearer is located; and further adjusting, by the hardware controller, the dynamically modifiable display based on the dominant hue of the environment in which the wearer is located.
 13. The method of claim 11, further comprising: generating, by a biometric sensor, an indication of a real-time biometric state of the wearer of the garment; and further adjusting, by the hardware controller, the dynamically modifiable display based on the real-time biometric state of the wearer of the garment.
 14. The method of claim 11, further comprising: generating, by a biometric sensor, an indication of a real-time biometric state of the wearer of the garment; and further adjusting, by a hardware controller, the dynamically modifiable display based on real-time inputs received from the biometric sensor and the wearer role identification device.
 15. The method of claim 11, further comprising: receiving, from a positioning hardware system, a real-time location of the wearer of the garment; receiving, from a news provider, a real-time contextual state of the real-time location of the wearer of the garment; and further adjusting, by the hardware controller, the dynamically modifiable display based on the real-time location of the wearer of the garment.
 16. The method of claim 11, further comprising: receiving, from a positioning hardware system, a real-time location of the wearer of the garment; and receiving, from a news provider, a real-time contextual state of the real-time location of the wearer of the garment, wherein the hardware controller further adjusts the dynamically modifiable display based on the real-time location of the wearer of the garment and a role of the wearer of the garment while within the real-time location, wherein the role of the wearer of the garment while within the real-time location depends on a current state of the real-time location.
 17. The method of claim 11, further comprising: retrieving, by the hardware controller and from a database storage device, multiple real-time roles of the wearer of the garment; and dynamically adjusting, by the hardware controller, the dynamically modifiable display to present visual images that simultaneously represent the multiple roles.
 18. The method of claim 11, further comprising: analyzing, by a prosody analyzer, vocal patterns of the wearer to determine a current state of the wearer; and further adjusting, by the hardware controller, the dynamically modifiable display based on the current state of the wearer of the garment.
 19. The method of claim 11, further comprising: retrieving, by the hardware controller and from a database storage device, a real-time role of the wearer of the garment; identifying, by a resource needs determination device, a current resource need of the wearer of the garment based on an input to the resource needs determination device from the wearer of the garment and on the real-time role of the wearer of the garment; and further adjusting, by the hardware controller, the dynamically modifiable display based on the current resource need of the wearer and the real-time role of the wearer of the garment.
 20. A computer program product for adjusting a dynamically modifiable display on a garment, the computer program product comprising a computer readable storage medium having program code embodied therewith, wherein the computer readable storage medium is not a transitory signal per se, and wherein the program code is readable and executable by a processor to perform a method comprising: identifying a role of a wearer of a garment, wherein the role of the wearer is dynamically changeable, and wherein the garment comprises a dynamically modifiable display; and determining, based on inputs from an environmental dominant hue sensor, a dominant hue of an environment in which the wearer is located; and adjusting, by a hardware controller, the dynamically modifiable display based on the role of the wearer and real-time inputs received from the environmental dominant hue sensor. 